27 January 2007

TURMOIL AND CORRUPTION IN MEXICO by Andrew Stergiou

TURMOIL AND CORRUPTION IN MEXICO by Andrew Stergiou

Recently the I read as to how the Mexican Federal government has started cracking down by use of its military in a blog posting entitled “The Tyrant Will Fall” which I can whole heartedly sympathize with (as I hate all tyrants). Accompanied by photographs of the Mexican military Inspect[ing] vehicles for drugs, weapons, and people” that is not sufficient to suit all purposes.The posting continued saying “It seems that the Mexican Government is going to do what many Mexicans have been asking for since 1910” though one would ask why it continued if the people never wanted it. Surely someone wanted the corruption. Surely someone profited from the corruption, the drugs, the trafficking, etc, so continuing on to say that

“the Mexican Government is going to do what many Mexicans have been asking for since 1910” – get rid of the corrupt, greedy and criminal element that has only added to the woes of the oppressed.”

“The new president, Calderon is being praised for his hardnosed crack down on the drug syndicates that virtually control all the politics along the US/[Mexican] border.“

But those familiar with the Humphrey Bogart movie Casablanca could not for get the scenes where the chief of the police raided the casino he patronized, regardless of the bribes he took, and crimes he committed, which is not to suggest the current or past presidents of Mexico committed any crimes as it is not necessarily a field I am expert in.

The blog continued saying that:

“Today, there are 3000 troops in Tijuana enforcing the law. The local TJ Police have been disarmed and placed on suspension pending a stringent investigation that will leave many of the current police unemployed and possibly charged with crimes ranging from accepting bribes to murder. All police weapons were confiscated and are being tested for ballistic matches with crime scene evidence. Mexican] Military monitoring traffic and inspecting vehicles “

In what appears at best to many as martial law, dictatorially imposed from above, so then we can ask who are the tyrants those imposing themselves as federal authorities exporting law and order dictatorially from Mexico City to the border regions, in it finds it self between a rock and a hard place to satisfy US public opinion, or those who actually represent success of what has existed there for decades.

Though many state:

“I must take my hat off to Calderon for this unprecedented action, it is a positive step towards solving one of the major problems facing Mexico and can serve as an example to other Latin American countries. It is also a sure fire way to prevent a revolution, which has been on the verge of occurring in the past few months because of what has happened in Oaxaca.”

I must state that the federal government would have no credibility in their intervention locally if they did not put on the show, appearing to crack down on the local criminal elements, and corruption, besides harassing the local people. If the federales did not crack down on the local criminal elements, those elements are independent enough to represent a political challenge so if it is real I predict a split in the PAN.

Also otherwise, the federal government would not appear to be acting fairly (not that local police care about appearances of fairness), but in that:

What is said to be carried out to prevent a “revolution”, decried as “a revolution” but like in 1910 (as many radical movements), was merely necessary as changes to bring Mexico peacefully into the 21st century, not a banana republic of have and have-nots, but as a modern democratic state that all parties in Mexico denounces depending on who does what, but which in reality actually exists.

Before I commented on that blog posting I had to check some of my facts (namely as to the results of the recent Mexican presidential elections, and I did) so sorry, if it offends anyone

BUT:

The new president Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa has become the President of Mexico Incumbent, ahead of the National Action Party (Partido Acción Nacional, known by the acronym PAN, a conservative and Christian Democratic party and one of the three main political parties in Mexico) Serving a term of office that began on December 1, 2006 and expires on November 30, 2012.

The area in which PAN, the president, and Mexico’s last president, and the border criminal gangs draw political strength from the same exact Northern Mexican border region. Strangely the photos of a military crackdown show the military crack in the Tiajuana area, when in actuality the largest of the major criminal drug gangs in based in Juarez , so PAN, and the president appears to be cracking down on his own, so something is not what it appears.

All those elements has the same political constituencies, and elements, which is said to be in the process of change, (in a perfect world) but though those elements are not the same exact elements, they are all dependent, and beholden, and in debt to each other: so there is no basis for changes which were claimed or suggested, as it all appears to be some kind of whitewash smokescreen cover-up to satisfy the political needs of the federal office so as to satisfy the US, and the north American public clamoring for change themselves.

Mexico is again in turmoil and the simple people of workers and peasants are paying in blood, for what robs Mexico and its people of its future. PAN today often represents many of the same elements which represented reactionary elements opposing the Mexican Revolution of 1910. That revolution began due to the inflexibility of Mexican politics and static conditions that remain the same for most Mexicans hence the cause why they and other people in Central America risk coming to the USA as illegally. PAN also as noted represents many of those border areas which are traditional corrupted by the lucrative trafficking trade there. It also contains many maquiladoras form a lucrative business for the multinational corporations raping both the USA and Mexico.

The Mexican revolution began with a call to arms made on 20 November 1910 by Francisco I. Madero, in what lasted until 1921. It is estimated that the war killed 900,000 of the 1910 population of 15 million. The president then did not live to see the fruit of that revolution as he was murdered in 1913, but what existed then, in the like of Generals Poncho Villa, and Emilio Zapata still exists today, in the soul of rebels that constitute the Zapatista movement.

Today the Mexican opposition represents the majority of Mexicans not PAN, namely the:

Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Institucional, PRI) – under different names, at the local, state, and national levels for most of the 20th century. Although a part of the Socialist International, it is most often perceived as left of center, supporting a policy of mixed economy and nationalized industries, both of which are longstanding Mexican practices.

Party of the Democratic Revolution (Partido de la Revolución Democrática, PRD) – a left of center party. Born as "National Democratic Front", a splinter group of the PRI, in the 1988 elections. Its first candidate and founder, Cuauhtémoc Cárdenas, lost the 1988 presidential election under dubious circumstances, which eventually helped the party consolidate itself. It is currently in power in the Federal District and in several other states.

Labour Party (Partido del Trabajo, PT) – a far-left political party formed in 1990. It is often allied with the PRD for electoral purposes.Green Ecological Party of Mexico (Partido Verde Ecologista de México, PVEM) – a minor party with an environmental platform. During most of its existence the party has been controversially managed by a single family.

Social Democratic and Farmer Alternative (Alternativa Socialdemócrata y Campesina, also known simply as Alternativa) – a party formed by former members of the Social Democracy Party and the Cardenist Front of National Reconstruction. It was established in July 14, 2005.

New Alliance (Nueva Alianza) – originally created by academics of the Autonomous Technical Institute of Mexico and members of the National Teachers Union. It was established in July 14, 2005.

Diversity is slowly coming to Mexico, though many may claim that Mexico (the only Latin American member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] since 1994), Mexico is firmly established as an upper middle-income country.”:

Such elements falsely circulate misinformation stating 30-35% of of the population belongs to a middle class element, those economic groups are neither homogenous nor static, but dynamic with many different factions represented today in Mexican politics. That in other countries (e.g. Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Nicaragua, Chile etc), today again have come to assert some independence in changing their governments administrations. Which well occur time and time again until the lessons of history are really learned, though so many North Americans often do not and attempt to change things in retro mode of what existed but which does not exist in that what they say:

“As the only Latin American member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) since 1994, Mexico is firmly established as an upper middle-income country.”

But all too often we have seen thing like that change over night (e.g. Cuba, Argentina) the thin margins of distinction are just that very thin lines.

“Populist”, “radical”, “reformist” change currently sweeping south America which I predict eventually will engulf in Mexico, radically affect Mexican politics, as the National interests of that country are best represented by those elements not compromised by international political interests, nor concerns of vested interests represented by the reactionary hierarchies of the church/Christianity.

Currently appearing in the media as the revelation of President Chavez of Venezula, while the reactionaries thinks pretentiously revolution is confined to Cuba, dictated in Cuba, and ruled over by Fidel Castro, in that they forget the radical Simone Bolivar and the historical movements of America de Sud, which hopefully will be resolved by the people of Mexico, not the gangs, generals, corporations, church, bureaucrats, or politicians.